Photo By maikel_nai
Creating a path in our lives doesn’t always come as a choice. Some of us find ourselves drifting into a way of life. Regardless, we are all faced with the day when we evaluate what we we really want in life. Recently I spoke at a conference, and I couldn’t help but notice how much we trend every bit of life. We validated past trends and looked at product-based evaluations, and how a manufacture can compete in a free trade world with essentially no borders. I was amazed at how they created categories. There was one chart that presented us with a snapshot of where an individual fit in as a business.
The lending institutions create models that group businesses into specific industries. Timing is very important, and bank experts will trend the economy and lend money based on what industry is on the up swing. This is why as an entrepreneur, it is important to interview many banks- you would be surprised how different each bank’s lending patterns can be.
But what was really interesting to me was the the topic of “competition”. The first thing they determined in the conference was that competition drives prices down, referring to them as “pricing wars”. The other thing that was addressed was service- the fact that people place more value on having a positive experience than they do on saving a dollar. And what I found interesting was the look on everyone’s faces as they listened to how tough it was out there from all areas- commodities, goods, service, and experience.
The reality is, if you combine a great product with an incredible experience, the price really doesn’t matter to the consumer. But because banks look at trends, the business owner gets pulled into these price wars, driving their quality and service down as they try to compete within their industry. As a business owner, having the ability to design a process that validates your industry trends is critical (but also very frustrating!).
Find out what you want to do in life and then determine what you are willing to go through in order to get it. In recent years, the rules in business have changed so much that there almost aren’t any. Years ago, an entrepreneur had to have a business plan that took months to design (and it actually helped them understand their business better), but today, lending institutions will let you know what your business is missing based on their model, not yours. Today, having a vision, validating it, and going after it is far more important than designing the grandiose business plan.
Things change fast- you have to spend more time staying ahead of the curve, rather than trying to fit into it. You never see Rolex or Rolls Royce having a blow-out sale because they are the trendsetters, and with our technology today, you can be one as well. Make sure you validate what you are doing; look at it from the outside, and if you are still excited about it, then go get it! Make the experience the value in your day- it can open a whole new world, one that you never knew existed.
And don’t forget to call your mother!
larstevens
A close knit team of ordinary people, with an extra ordinary passion to change the way the world works.
